Hello,In a recent conversation with a Buddhist friend, she confessed that she believes the UK Conservative Party tend to promote inequality, greed and selfishness and thus confessed she could never bring herself to vote for them. This has led me to consider which, if any, UK political party hold values that reflect my own Buddhist inspired views. As such, I was wondering if any UK Buddhists out there had ever voted or intened to vote Conservative in a general election?

I have never voted, and probably never will, but if I did I would vote for the candidate rather than any particular party. The best politician are those who are honest, hard-working, and intelligent. I am not so cynical as to think that all politicians are dishonest.

I have never voted Conservative, but it is worth noting that the Conservative candidates themselves would probably argue that they are promoting self-reliance, respect, responsibility and restraint as virtues.

And further worth noting that the actual difference in policies between the main parties is actually quite small. People become successful politicians in the UK because of the vision and desires which they stimulate in the electorate, while pretending that they have some degree of control over the overwhelming exigencies of political and economic globalisation.

Bhikkhu Pesala's point is extremely pertinent. Would you vote for a candidate who claimed to promote social justice if they also promoted, say, abortion or euthanasia?

I tend to agree with others here. I am not particularly knowledgeable about UK party policies so have voted for the candidate I feel would be the best. With a representative democracy you are never going to get an individual or a party who lines up 100% with what you think are the best policies.Never voted conservative but that's mainly due to family allegiance. I think they would disown me if I ever did

"If beings knew, as I know, the results of giving & sharing, they would not eat without having given, nor would the stain of miserliness overcome their minds. Even if it were their last bite, their last mouthful, they would not eat without having shared." Iti 26

Our political landscape here in Australia is rather similar (much more similar than the landscape itself, come to think of it ) so some of you may find http://www.abc.net.au/votecompass/ fun/interesting/useful. Just be aware that our Conservatives are the Coalition (of Liberal-by-name-only and National (essentially rural-conservative) parties). Our Labor is roughly the same as yours, as are the Greens. We have some small right-wing parties that I'm tempted to call a lunatic fringe but won't ... quite ... but they don't make much of an appearance in the quiz, if any.

Kim OHara wrote:Our political landscape here in Australia is rather similar (much more similar than the landscape itself, come to think of it ) so some of you may find http://www.abc.net.au/votecompass/ fun/interesting/useful. Just be aware that our Conservatives are the Coalition (of Liberal-by-name-only and National (essentially rural-conservative) parties). Our Labor is roughly the same as yours, as are the Greens. We have some small right-wing parties that I'm tempted to call a lunatic fringe but won't ... quite ... but they don't make much of an appearance in the quiz, if any.

Kim

The only time in my life that I voted conservative was in the federal election before the last one. I knew the liberal party candidate - he was a friend and I knew he would have been a great representative for our electorate. I also know the newly elected (liberal party) representative for our electorate. His daughter and my daughter went through med school together and are best mates. I didn't vote for him despite my confidence in his abilities, but rather voted Green as a result of a lack of confidence in both our major parties, the lack of compassion in their policies and the morally dubious nature of their leaders.kind regards,

Ben

“No lists of things to be done. The day providential to itself. The hour. There is no later. This is later. All things of grace and beauty such that one holds them to one's heart have a common provenance in pain. Their birth in grief and ashes.” - Cormac McCarthy, The Road

Learn this from the waters:in mountain clefts and chasms,loud gush the streamlets,but great rivers flow silently.- Sutta Nipata 3.725

purple planet wrote:In every country and every city you never vote for a good candidate you just vote for the least worse candidate -

Sarath and Chownah, this might be the best advice for you on this thread. Voting for nobody gives a vote to the opponent/s of the least-worst candidate that you could have supported. And you don't want to support the most-worst candidate, do you?

Here in israel I vote usually for the most right wing party i find ( in israel right and left has nothing to do with economy - in some ways in economy the israeli "right" is actually left) to the part who has a hard anti teror agenda and is against giving away land - and on the other hand i want to vote for a party who has animal rights agenda - there was a left wing party who claimed to be a "green" party - mainly in enviorment issues but also a little about animals

So i thought about this - and decided that if there is no israel - there wont be no animal rights anyway so i decided to choose the extreme right party - so in my view i choose from the least worst even though the party was not enough animal rights oriented in my opinion -

but after i decided i checked and saw that actually the right wing party has done a lot for animal rights much more then the left party - still its not enough in my opinion but i choose the least worst

purple planet wrote:Here in israel I vote usually for the most right wing party i find ( in israel right and left has nothing to do with economy - in some ways in economy the israeli "right" is actually left) to the part who has a hard anti teror agenda and is against giving away land - and on the other hand i want to vote for a party who has animal rights agenda - there was a left wing party who claimed to be a "green" party - mainly in enviorment issues but also a little about animals

Animal rights? Important, but so are human rights.

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723

>> Do you see a man wise[enlightened/ariya]in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<<-- Proverbs 26:12

purple planet wrote:In every country and every city you never vote for a good candidate you just vote for the least worse candidate -

Sarath and Chownah, this might be the best advice for you on this thread. Voting for nobody gives a vote to the opponent/s of the least-worst candidate that you could have supported. And you don't want to support the most-worst candidate, do you?

Kim

Hi KimI did not say that I am against voting or I do not vote.I am just a dreamer! that's all

Here in israel I vote usually for the most right wing party i find ( in israel right and left has nothing to do with economy - in some ways in economy the israeli "right" is actually left) to the part who has a hard anti teror agenda and is against giving away land - and on the other hand i want to vote for a party who has animal rights agenda - there was a left wing party who claimed to be a "green" party - mainly in enviorment issues but also a little about animals

I hope you don't mean the land that was annexed?

The dogmatists have claimed to have found the truth, others say that it cannot be apprehended; the Sceptics continue the search. Sextus Empiricus

i talk about all the land under israeli control even some that isnt and should be but i gave it only as an example - dont want to start a discussion on this subject - first cause i cant talk about other religons because of "terms of service" and its 90% of the issue and secondly it will derail this thread from the original post - it was a mistake i guess to post it - so im keeping away from this thread and other poiltical threads in the future

purple planet wrote:In every country and every city you never vote for a good candidate you just vote for the least worse candidate -

Sarath and Chownah, this might be the best advice for you on this thread. Voting for nobody gives a vote to the opponent/s of the least-worst candidate that you could have supported. And you don't want to support the most-worst candidate, do you?

Kim

Kim OHara, this might be the best advice for you on this thread.Electoral Politics is a game where hundreds of people get drowned at sea.......I don't play that kind of game.....it is a waste of my time. If voting could actually change society in a fundamental way it would be illegal. If you think that any of the politicians are going to change society in a fundamental way so that they lose their perks then you are dreaming. If you think the rich people who buy the politicians their office are going to work to fundamentally change society so they reduce their profits then you are dreaming. If you think society needs to be fundamentally changed then don't look to electoral politics......you'd accomplish more by getting rich and buying a politician.chownah